Electronic component boxes such as computer servers are frequently stored in cabinets in dedicated locations such as central computer rooms. Electrical component or server cabinets can be used to store component boxes for security and for organizational and aesthetic purposes in these locations. Such locations also tend to be limited in floor space, making it necessary for individual component boxes to be stored vertically in a way that maximizes the usage of space that is available. For these reasons, for example, existing server cabinets are commonly available in a variety of fixed sizes, these cabinets typically being configured to store multiple computer servers In a stacked or vertical arrangement.
Many server cabinets are equipped with a front door which allows access to its interior from its front end. Server cabinets are typically equipped with slides on each side that allow each server to temporarily slide out past the front door to allow for quick access to internal components within the servers, without requiring complete removal of a server from its cabinet mounting. The front door typically remains open as each server is serviced. An example of one such server cabinet is described in my co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/282,881.
Most server cabinets are designed so that the center of gravity of a particular cabinet is supported by the base of the cabinet when the cabinet is either empty or when one or more servers have been installed. However, when the front door is opened and as one or more servers are accessed, each server moves forward on a pair of slides and passes over the front door threshold in a way that may cause the center of gravity of the cabinet to temporarily shift past the fixed base of the cabinet. For this reason, it may be necessary to temporarily expand the support base of a cabinet with an appropriate additional support member while the servers are in a forward position.
Due to the limited amount of floor space that is normally available at dedicated locations used for server cabinets, it is often necessary for an external support member to be removable or retractable to normally make available the space that the support member occupies during the servicing of a server while it is in a forward position in a cabinet. However, when a cabinet support member is removable or manually extendable, its use becomes dependent on the initiative of the installer or remover of each server. Therefore, there is a risk that a person servicing a component box, being pressed for time, impatient, or otherwise not inclined to adhere to procedures, could attempt to install or unload a component box without making use of or fully extending the cabinet support member.